Jewellery firsts: Pandora lands at Gatwick, busy Astrid & Miyu makes Belfast, Bicester debut

Pandora’s position as one of the world’s major jewellery brands doesn’t mean its exhausted all avenues for growth with the 7,800-store Danish brand has opening its first London airport store at Gatwick’s South Terminal. It follows its first UK airport debut in July at Manchester Airport.

Located in Gatwick’s upgraded departures lounge, the store showcases Pandora’s complete range of collections made from 100% recycled gold and silver including travel-inspired charms, its popular ‘Best of British’ range and includes an on-site engraving service.

The launch of Pandora’s new store coincides with a £7.5 million transformation of the South Terminal departure lounge, which is set to complete next month.

Ross Monaghan, sales director, Pandora UK & Ireland, said: “Our standalone airport store at London Gatwick — our second in the UK — the busiest single-runway airport in the world… presents a fantastic opportunity to connect with a truly global audience.”

Astrid & Miyu is also continuing its physical retail expansion (26 units and counting) following several years of sustained growth. This time the British jewellery brand has further strengthen its footprint on four fronts: two new openings in Selfridges London and Manchester (the latter opening late September), fashion outlet favourite Bicester Village, and a new city debut for the brand, Belfast.

All the new locations become “playgrounds for jewellery lovers”, housing the brand’s complete line of stackable jewellery as well as tits popular experiential shopping services including onsite piercings, bespoke tattoos and weldings.

Founder & CEO Connie Nam, said “Being leaders in the experiential space is not just a goal, it’s a core part of who we are as a brand. We take immense pride in creating immersive, memorable in-store experiences that go beyond traditional retail. We want every visit to our stores to feel like a special occasion, one that leaves a lasting impression.”